Chapter 11
- Where does Lou Ann get a job?
- What are the working conditions at this factory?
- Why is Lou Ann so worried about Dwayne Ray?
- Although Lou Ann may worry too much about Dwayne Ray, what is the positive side to the worry?
- What evidence is there that Lou Ann is a very good employee?
- Why does Sal Monelli strike terror into Lu Ann’s heart?
- Why are Esperanza and Steven to be moved to a safe house in Oregon or Oklahoma?
Cultural and Historical Allusions
- salsa
- sweatshop
- cigar box
- Keno girl
- Gypsy
- yurt
- Mongolia
- Siberia
- Mongol nomads
- hot-air blimp
- Immigration Services
- Navajo Reservation
- deportation
- plugged nickel
Medical, Natural, and Geographic Allusions
- Chilies
- garlic cloves
- cilantro
- Liberty, Kansas
- Siamese twins
- frontal lobes
- double rainbow
- squash
- underwater earthquake
- cicadas
- Pekinese
- salmonella
- pinewood
Great Quotes
- “‘Is it better to be totally retarded and deformed and miserable, or just plain old dead?’
‘I honestly couldn’t say,’ I said. ‘Not having been either one.’ Although, when I thought about it, being dead seemed a lot like not being born yet, and I hadn’t especially minded that.” (153) - “I didn’t want to believe the world could be so unjust. But of course it was right there in front of my nose. If the truth was a snake it would have bitten me a long time ago. It would have had me for dinner.” (159)